Big night for Peterson for Parkinson’s

Just got home from a moving evening at the Peterson Foundation for Parkinson’s dinner and silent auction. Here is a link to the story in today’s Tennessean explaining Peterson’s condition and his foundation.

The night included some powerful speeches by Peterson and former NBA star Brian Grant. Grant also suffers from Parkinson’s which causes his left hand to shake.

It was tough seeing Grant, who I remember as such a big, strong, imposing player, having tremors as he stood at a podium in front of a room full of people. But he put on a brave face and gave some words of motivation.

Comedian Henry Cho provided some comic relief. Tomorrow is the celebrity golf tournament, which will involve most of the Predators. You can find more information on the organization’s official site, here.

“It was unbelievable support from everyone here,” Peterson said. “We’re going to have a good time at the golf. Brian Grant and Henry Cho were just terrific. They made the whole program work and it was just a great night and we had a great time.”

In terms of the silent auction, the big winner was a beaming J.P. Dumont. The Predators forward took home a guitar signed by country music star Taylor Swift. Jordin Tootoo won a signed Alan Jackson guitar and Steve Sullivan took home a signed Kid Rock guitar.

After inking a new contract yesterday, defenseman Cody Franson had his arms full of stuff. It looked like he had a Tennessee Titans helmet and a few hockey jerseys. I was most jealous of the Examiner’s Jim Diamond, who won a signed Kerry Fraser referee jersey.